After scoring an eyecatching century on his Test debut against England in January 1951, Jim Burke took his omission from the 1953 Ashes tour so hard that he redoubled efforts to banish risk from his game. Henceforward he was both a curse on bowlers and the bane of spectators: his 28 not out in 250 minutes during the Brisbane Test of December 1958 is almost as infamous as Trevor Bailey's batting marathon in the same game. Team-mates, though, often had cause to bless his blunting presence. His highest Test innings underwrote an innings victory at Cape Town in January 1958, and his dour batting belied an impish humorist. Gideon Haigh